Survey: 22 percent of Traip students considered suicide

Friday

Mar 21, 2014 at 3:00 PMMar 21, 2014 at 4:07 PM

KITTERY, Maine — Traip Academy Principal Eric Waddell is worried. According to the biennial Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey, more than one-third of Traip Academy students reported feeling depressed, and more than 20 percent said they have considered suicide.

Deborah McDermott

KITTERY, Maine — Traip Academy Principal Eric Waddell is worried.

According to the biennial Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey, more than one-third of Traip Academy students reported feeling depressed, and more than 20 percent said they have considered suicide.

Those numbers are higher than the statewide average of all Maine high school students, as are the numbers for drinking, smoking marijuana and taking prescription drugs.

The results of the anonymous survey were recently released by the state, although students took the survey in February 2013. The state gathers this information every two years.

Traip's statistics come to light during what has been a challenging school year. In October, police found a BB gun in a student's car that he said he brought for “protection.” It looked like a semi-automatic weapon.

In December, a Kittery man was arrested on charges he sold laced marijuana, after at least two Traip students who smoked some of the pot experienced seizures. A month later, a student was expelled after he threatened to kill students and staff at the end of the year.

“There have been incidents this school year that have amplified the need to be in tune with our kids,” Waddell said. “I will tell you, there are communities in this state that don't like talking about this because they're afraid it's going to cast them in a poor light. But as difficult as it is to talk about it, it's important. Because I can tell you, there are problems in every school in Maine and in the country.”

The Maine Integrated Youth Health Survey looks at everything from drug use to mental health, and to what extent social media, parental influence and school influence bear on the equation.

Waddell said he is most concerned about the mental health questions on the survey. Some 36 percent of students reported feeling depressed every day for more than two weeks in the past year, as compared to 24 percent of students statewide.

Twenty-two percent reported they had considered suicide in the past 12 months, versus 15 percent statewide.

“I want every parent to hear that. Twenty-two percent considered suicide and very few spoke to an adult. We have to focus on this issue,” he said. “Kids are growing up so fast. Parents are working, kids are alone. There's pressures at school. It all adds up.”

He said next year, under a state law, all teachers are going to receive two hours of training on how to recognize signs of depression. “I know it's not much, but it's a start. What are the signs and what do you do? When a parent says he won't get out of bed, he's not eating and his friends don't come around any more, who can you connect them with?” he said.

Alcohol and marijuana use are also concerning issues, he said. Some 37 percent of Traip students reported drinking alcohol in the past 30 days, compared to 26 percent statewide. For marijuana, the numbers are 31 percent, versus 22 percent statewide.

He said it's important to keep the percentages in perspective. Traip is a small school, so a small number of students can skew the numbers, which is less likely at a large school. Still, “it's concerning.”

“Kids are saying it's easy to get alcohol. It's legal, parents have it in the house, they have it in the fridge. Kids think they won't miss it,” he said.

As for pot, “there's a belief among the public that marijuana is safe, and the fact that medicinal marijuana is legal hasn't helped,” he said.

While schools do have a role to play, he said, “the message about drugs and alcohol has to start way before ninth grade. Parents still have the most influence — more than health class, more than peers, more than teachers.”

He said now that survey results are known, “it's a start. It's a process and it's not going to change overnight. But we've started the conversation.”

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